As I have for a while now, I’m exploring the sounds I can make with a harmonica and two amp modelers running in parallel. I recorded this piece with a Digitech RP500 running a patch that combines a Champ amp model with a rotary speaker, paired with a patch on the Vox Stomplab IG that includes a low octave, an autowah, and a tough amp model. There are some subtle and not-so-subtle things going on here.

My rig as of October 2015. Digitech iStomp is to the left of the RP500. Vox Stomplab IG is next to the blue box on the lower left.
My rig as of October 2015. Digitech iStomp is to the left of the RP500. Vox Stomplab IG is next to the blue box on the lower left.

On the not-so-subtle side, when all the FX are rolling it’s a pretty big sound. Two amp models to add grit and depth, a shaky rotary speaker, and a low octave plus an auto wah–that’s a lotta tone going on right outa the box. Because I have a Digitech iStomp running Swing Shift feeding the RP500, I can also add or subtract low and high octaves in the RP500 side of the signal–which you can hear me doing as the piece unfolds.

On the subtle side, one of the things I like most about any autowah is that it responds to volume–more volume, more high frequencies in the tone as the filter opens up. So playing harder or softer doesn’t just make the volume go up or down; it makes the tone brighter or darker, and adds a “wow” to the attack that’s certainly ear-catching.

You can hear all that going on in this piece, which was improvised in its entirety. I think it’s crazy cool, hence the title.

Enjoy.

Crazy Cool Organ by Richard Hunter. Copyright © 2015 R Hunter/Turtle Hill Productions, all rights reserved